1977 Pittsburgh Steelers season | |
---|---|
Owner | Art Rooney |
Head coach | Chuck Noll |
Home field | Three Rivers Stadium |
Results | |
Record | 9–5 |
Division place | 1st in AFC Central |
Playoff finish | Lost Divisional Playoffs (at Broncos) 21–34 |
Pro Bowlers | 4
|
AP All-Pros | 4
|
Team MVP | Terry Bradshaw |
The 1977 Pittsburgh Steelers season was the franchise's 45th in the National Football League. After what was considered the franchise's greatest season ever in 1976, the 1977 Pittsburgh Steelers failed to improve on their 10-4 record from 1976 and finished with a 9-5 record, however they appeared in the playoffs for their 6th straight season and won the AFC Central again. They had a hard time for most of the season as their record hovered around .500. Even the Steel curtain seemed to have a little wear and tear allowing 243 points on the season, more than 100 more than the previous season. The sloppy plays would catch up with them in the Divisional Playoffs when they were knocked off by the Broncos 34–21 in Denver.
The 1977 season is remembered as one of the most turbulent in franchise history, as numerous players were involved with off-the-field issues. Defensive tackle Ernie Holmes was arrested for cocaine possession, and despite being found not guilty, lawsuits followed. Head coach Chuck Noll was also subject to a defamation lawsuit, as Oakland Raiders safety George Atkinson sued Noll and the Steelers for a disparaging comment in which Noll called Atkinson part of the "criminal element" in football. Though Atkinson lost the lawsuit, Noll was forced to bring Steelers cornerback Mel Blount into the suit, which upset Blount as he was one of many Steelers players engaged in a contract holdout, with others including linebacker Jack Lambert and safety Glen Edwards. Disputes between these players and Steelers owner Art Rooney were often publicized, and the overall drama played a significant part in the regression of the Steel Curtain defense. [1] [2] This was also the first season that the Steelers wore black face masks on their helmets.
Front office
Head coaches
Offensive coaches
| Defensive coaches
Strength and conditioning
|
The Pittsburgh Steelers began the 1977 season looking to improve upon their 10–4 record in 1976; when they lost to the eventual Super Bowl champion Oakland Raiders.
While the Steelers once again won the AFC Central crown, they finished with one fewer win; going 9–5 and losing to the Denver Broncos in the AFC Divisional playoff game at Denver.
Week | Date | Opponent | Kickoff (ET) | TV | Result | Record | Game Site |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Mon. Sep. 19 | San Francisco 49ers | 9:00 p.m. | ABC | W 27–0 | 1–0 | Three Rivers Stadium |
2 | Sun. Sep. 25 | Oakland Raiders | 4:00 p.m. | NBC | L 7–16 | 1–1 | Three Rivers Stadium |
3 | Sun. Oct. 2 | at Cleveland Browns | 1:00 p.m. | NBC | W 28–14 | 2–1 | Cleveland Municipal Stadium |
4 | Sun. Oct. 9 | at Houston Oilers | 2:00 p.m. | NBC | L 10–27 | 2–2 | Astrodome |
5 | Mon. Oct. 17 | Cincinnati Bengals | 9:00 p.m. | ABC | W 20–14 | 3–2 | Three Rivers Stadium |
6 | Sun. Oct. 23 | Houston Oilers | 1:00 p.m. | NBC | W 27–10 | 4–2 | Three Rivers Stadium |
7 | Sun. Oct. 30 | at Baltimore Colts | 4:00 p.m. | NBC | L 21–31 | 4–3 | Memorial Stadium |
8 | Sun. Nov. 6 | at Denver Broncos | 4:00 p.m. | NBC | L 7–21 | 4–4 | Mile High Stadium |
9 | Sun. Nov. 13 | Cleveland Browns | 1:00 p.m. | NBC | W 35–31 | 5–4 | Three Rivers Stadium |
10 | Sun. Nov. 20 | Dallas Cowboys | 4:00 p.m. | CBS | W 28–13 | 6–4 | Three Rivers Stadium |
11 | Sun. Nov. 27 | at New York Jets | 1:00 p.m. | NBC | W 23–20 | 7–4 | Shea Stadium |
12 | Sun. Dec. 4 | Seattle Seahawks | 1:00 p.m. | NBC | W 30–20 | 8–4 | Three Rivers Stadium |
13 | Sat. Dec. 10 | at Cincinnati Bengals | 1:00 p.m. | NBC | L 10–17 | 8–5 | Riverfront Stadium |
14 | Sun. Dec. 18 | at San Diego Chargers | 4:00 p.m. | NBC | W 10–9 | 9–5 | San Diego Stadium |
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
49ers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Steelers | 0 | 10 | 3 | 14 | 27 |
at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Scoring drives:
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Raiders | 0 | 9 | 0 | 7 | 16 |
Steelers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 |
at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Scoring drives:
Period | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Steelers | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 28 |
Browns | 7 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 14 |
at Cleveland Municipal Stadium, Cleveland, Ohio
Game information | ||
---|---|---|
|
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Steelers | 3 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
Oilers | 7 | 0 | 10 | 10 | 27 |
Scoring drives:
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Bengals | 0 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 14 |
Steelers | 0 | 13 | 0 | 7 | 20 |
at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Scoring drives:
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Oilers | 0 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 10 |
Steelers | 0 | 7 | 6 | 14 | 27 |
at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Scoring drives:
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Steelers | 0 | 0 | 7 | 14 | 21 |
Colts | 3 | 14 | 7 | 7 | 31 |
at Memorial Stadium, Baltimore, Maryland
Scoring drives:
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Steelers | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 7 |
Broncos | 14 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 21 |
at Mile High Stadium, Denver, Colorado
Scoring drives:
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Browns | 3 | 0 | 7 | 21 | 31 |
Steelers | 7 | 21 | 0 | 7 | 35 |
at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Scoring drives:
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Cowboys | 6 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 13 |
Steelers | 0 | 14 | 14 | 0 | 28 |
at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Scoring drives:
Period | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Steelers | 6 | 14 | 0 | 3 | 23 |
Jets | 6 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 20 |
at Shea Stadium, Flushing, New York
Game information | ||
---|---|---|
|
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Seahawks | 0 | 3 | 10 | 7 | 20 |
Steelers | 7 | 6 | 0 | 17 | 30 |
at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Scoring drives:
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Steelers | 0 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
Bengals | 7 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 17 |
at Riverfront Stadium, Cincinnati
Scoring drives:
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Steelers | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 10 |
Chargers | 6 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 9 |
at San Diego Stadium, San Diego, California
Scoring drives:
AFC Central | |||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
W | L | T | PCT | DIV | CONF | PF | PA | STK | |
Pittsburgh Steelers (3) | 9 | 5 | 0 | .643 | 4–2 | 7–5 | 276 | 243 | W1 |
Houston Oilers | 8 | 6 | 0 | .571 | 3–3 | 6–6 | 299 | 230 | W2 |
Cincinnati Bengals | 8 | 6 | 0 | .571 | 3–3 | 6–5 | 238 | 235 | L1 |
Cleveland Browns | 6 | 8 | 0 | .429 | 2–4 | 5–7 | 269 | 267 | L4 |
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Steelers | 0 | 14 | 0 | 7 | 21 |
Broncos | 7 | 7 | 7 | 13 | 34 |
at Mile High Stadium, Denver, Colorado
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